Drier and granulator



Nov. 14, 1933. R. s. KENT DRIER AND GRANULATOR Filed July 8, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VENT 01? Y 17mm Jay/2 5601;

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Nov. 14, 1933. R 5 -r 1,934,930

DRIER AND GRANULATOR Filed July 8, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR ATTORNEY Nov. 14, 1933. R, s, KENT DRIER AND GRANULATOR Filed July 8, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 R6 v. maw mm 0 V .T T m A M f 6 M M B m mw \WMINMN%.

Patented Nov. 14/1933 7 1,934,930" H g ER. D A UL QB- E I Robert Sayi-eKent,Brooklyn; my. I V V Al plicationjuly s, 1931. SerialNo; 549,397 Q "3 claims; (ci

' This invention relates, generally, to improve- 'merits in drying apparatus; and-has reference, I more especially; to-anapparatus for drying moist v granulated sugar andsimilar materials.

' Briers-have heretofore been 'used which comprise *a' cylindrical drum rotatable about an inclined axis and provided on its interior wall surfaces with flights to-pick up' and spill, through heated air; currents flowing through the drurnpthe material to-be dried; Drumsof "this-characterare V not "highly eflicient; since the spilling or tumbling 'of the material frequently fails to entirely'br'eak uplumpsof initiallywetor-moistmaterial into the granular condition desired for the material dis-' charged from -the-drum as dried; l

' This invention ha's for *its principal object -*to provide, in combination with tumblingdrier drums of the kind above ref erred'to; means within thedrum interior and'cooperative with the-spill ing flightsfthereof *for qui'ckly and efliciently breakingup initially moist lumps of material =undergoing" drying treatment to fthe end that a inbre rapid and thorough drying of the material,

together with a more rapid reduction of the same while at the same time the capacity of the -dr-ier drui n is increased; i. "e; *the drum embodying the improvements of this invention is amiable-of U treating "larger quantities of material during a given time' period thanhas"heretofore been possib1af' f r Ether objects of this invention, not at this time more particularly'enumeratedl will be understood "fromthiollo'wing description of-the-same. T

6 Illustrative embodiments of this inventiori' 'are 7 shown -in thef accompanying drawings} in Y,

which:- I 1 1 ":is a sectional :side'elevation of a dry- "ing apparatus according to thisdnven'tion, and

nal vertical section through -the rotat'able drum of the 'drying .capparatus, drawn on ain-enlarged scale; -Fig.'-3 is; a transverse section-{taken on line S- '-3=in' Fig.*2;' Fig. 4--is atransverse section, itaken -on*'1ine in'FiggZ; Fig; 5-is :a transverse-sectionytaken online 5 5 in Fig. -1-,?but

, 'form--of' internal breakerkscreen. I

-=Bimilar'characters of reference are employed 'in fthe above described 'views,--t'o "indicate corresponding'"pi-Hts. 5

Y -"-In=carrying out my"presentdnventionin practice, I may make u'se' ofany'suitable drying apfragmentary sectional vi'ew; showing-a rnodified '5 to =-finished granular condition, -*may beattained, I

adaptediespecia'lly for the drying of granu-' ceiving end tow'ard its discharge end. To this end said drum is'supported;- adjaeent"to each end, i by roller-bearings 11. At the receiving end of said drum is an intake opening 12; preferably of reduced diameter as provided by an annular I0 end flange "13' with which said receiving; end or the drum is' provided, Into theiintakeopenin'g '12 projects "a delivery spout 14, tltu-oughwhich moist sug'ar to be dried is deliveredi into the' drum; fl his spout '14 connects with-a chamber 76 l5,-which is connected infti-irn with-a supply- V pipe =16 leading froma storage floor or bin-above the- 'dryingapparatus. Within the chamber-'15 is a force-deed device, such as a screw-conveyer l;7,'to' positively feed the moist sugar-into the spout 14.- Provision is ma-de f-for continuously rotating the drum 10, the means :shown for the purpose comprising an external ringige'ar 18 9 around theacircumference of the drum, which is driven by a pinion '1'9 -that-is -fixed -upon and as actuated by a drive -shaft 20, op

er'atedfin any suitable manner from a -convenient -so'uroe of power. -TNear the lower end- 0f the drumc-pro vision ismade for preventing :endwise movement "of -said'drum, rolls, suchias' 21', coactingwith opposite sides of i an external ring; 22" for l this purpose. I *1 At the lower end of the drum, the dried mav trial delivered therefrom "passes mm a dis-- charge hopper-'23, from which it maybe de- 96 V livered to the packing room or -other;place. The discharge endof -the drum is surrounded-by housing 24, through one wall of which the drum projects and in which it freely turns; I Through this housing-24 the drying medium,.usually -hot 100 air, is delivered -into the drum to move {-there- 7 through in-a direction opposite-to that inwhich the sugartumblesthrough ithe -drum *Suita'ble heating means, such -a s-a' steam radiator '25, is arranged -across the air intake opening of said 105. housing 24, whereby the air deliveredfinto and passed through th d-rum =is heated-to the desired degree. j 'At =the opposite -or receiving .end

of the ldrum is-a similar housing :i26' t'o surround the same. "The heated air passed throughzthe Q10 drum discharges into said housing 26, and is thereupon exhausted therefrom by any suitable suction means, such as the exhaust fan 27.

Radially arranged about the internal cylindrical surface of the drum, so as to project radially inward therefrom, are a plurality of circumferentially spaced flights 28. These'fiights may possess straight free edges, or their free edges may be of irregular or saw-tooth form as shown.

Theparts hereinabove thus far described are all well-known to the art to which this invention appertains. v

In drying apparatus of thelkind described, rapid breaking up of lumps of moist sugar or other material undergoing the drying treatment has not been efficiently attained by the spilling and tumbling of the material by the flights as the drum rotates, and consequently I have found that comparatively slow operation of the drum with reduced output capacity for given period of Operation has been required to obtain the desired dry granulated condition of the material, fre'e from lumps; at the discharge end of the drum. To avoid this drawback, I have provided aninternal breaker screen within the drum interior through which the material must pass as it spills off of the flights; this screen functions to quickly breakup or disintegrate lumps so that drying of the material may be both more thore ough and more rapidly attained, and the output of the drier for a given period of operation substantially increased. a

The novel breaker screen in one formvcomprises the following structure:-

' Fixed to the inner surface of the drum wall are longitudinally spaced apart oircumferentially spaced carrier posts 29, tothe ends-of which are secured, at their bases 30,-inwardly and radially projecting perforate ,brackets 30. Rotatable in said brackets 30 are adjusting screws 31 having collars 31 fixed thereon to provide abutment shoulders to bear against said brackets. In the respective sets. of brackets 30, the adjusting screws project outwardly toward the adjacent open ends of the drum. The reference character 32 indicates flanged anchor rings, the same having suitably affixed thereto, in proper locations, internally threaded nut blocks .33 to, "receive the threadedfree ends of said adjusting screws 31, which also project outwardly through the flanges of said anchorrings. The anchor rings 32 are thus adjustably supported for movement axially of the drum. Lock nuts 34: are provided on the outer ends of the adjustingscrews to secure the anchor rings in desired adjusted positions. Ex-

tending longitudinally between the anchorrings,

and in oircumferentially spaced apart relation, at suitably spaced intervals, are a plurality of screen wires or rods 35, the ends of whichare respectively secured to the flangesof the anchor rings, either by riveting, by application of nuts threaded thereon, or in any other convenient manner. q V

The supported screen wires or rods 35 form a cylindrical breaker screen concentric to and spaced inwardly from the walls of the drum and the fiights'mounted thereon. By manipulating the adjusting screws 31, the anchorrings may be .moved axially in relation one to the other to hereby tautly stretch the screen wires orrods 35 tlierebetween, r-

- If desired the screen-wires or rods 35 may be supported, at one or .more points intermediate the anchor rings, by perforate annular supporting ring-36,-through the perforations j.Of which the drum interiorwith its respec wires or rodsare'passed. The supporting ring 36 is in turn supported by supporting arms 3'7, which are suitably secured to and which project radially inward from the wall of the drum.

In the operation of the drier, the drum 10 is continuously rotated in one direction, and the sugar to be dried is continuously delivered into the receiving end of the drum through the intake opening 12. The sugar thus/deposited in the drum, is picked up by the flights 28 and carried upwardly at one side of the drum interior, so as to be spilled off of the flights near the top side -,o f' the drum, whereupon the same falls in a shower downwardly through the drum interior to by the flights for repetition of the spilling and falling operations. Owing to the downward inclination of'the drum, the repeated lifting, spilling and falling movements of the sugar gradually shifts the same toward the discharge end of the drum, during the course of which movement the sugar is repeatedly tumbled through the stream of heated air circulating through the drum in: terior, whereby the sugar crystals are thoroughly dried by the time they reach the discharge end of the drum for discharge therefrom. The initial moist condition of the sugar delivered'into the drum tends to cause the crystals to adheretogether and form lumps. These lumps unless of the heated air. .The function of the novel breaker screen of this invention is to aid in the more rapid and thorough disintegration of these lumps, so that the sugar crystals are more quickly separated and exposed to contact with the heated air. As the sugar progresses to the vicinity of the breaker screen and is pickedup and spilled from the flights 28, it will fall upon the annularly spaced screen wires or rods, so that any lumps in the thus spilled sugar will strike the screen wires or rods was to be split u and disintegrated thereby, the freed sugar crystals dropping between the screen wires or-rods through the current of heated air, and being thus more easily and quickly dried by such air. The lump disintegrating effects of the breaker screen are so rapidly accomplished, that the drum maybe safely rotated at higher speed and the sugar consequently handled and dried with such'increa'sed rapidity, that a drum equipped with the novel breaker screen has a considerably increased dry;

ing capacity over a giventime period of operation, and a dry, finely divided granulated con,- dition is assured by the time the sugar reaches the discharge end of the drurn.

v V The position of the breaker screen within lthe drum interior is subject to more or less variation; it may bearranged to extend through .the tive ends terminating short, otthereceiving anddischarge ends of the drum; or it may bedisposed with an' end close to the receiving end of the This latter arrangement is indicated in Fig. 6, wherein the anchor ring 32' is adjustably supported by eye-bolts 38, the'eyes of the bolts engaging over a pin 39 carried by to the anchor ring 32 The threaded shanks of said eye-bolts 38extend through the end flange 13 of drum, and are ad-justably secured by nuts 41 on the outwardly projecting ends of said eye- 1 boltqshanks. It is also indicated in Fig. 6 that the breaker screen may be built in sections-coupled end to end, adjacent anchor rings 32f of which may be coupled together by screws42,

orin other convenientv manner.

bifurcated ears 40 secured flights to pick up,

in inwardly spaced relation to As many changes, other than those above in- :dicated, could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely ,difierent embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof it is intended, therefore, that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying draw-' ings shall be interpreted as illustrative, and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:' w 1. In a drying apparatus, an inclined rotary cylindrical material conveying drum open from,

end to end and mounted to turn about its; 1on

gitudinal axis, flights projecting from the inner 'adjustably support said anchor rings to tautly stretch said screen rods and to' dispose the latter the flightsof said drum. I

2. In a drying apparatus, a rotary cylindrical material conveying drum open from end to end and mounted to turn about an inclined longitudinal axis, said drum having on its inner surfaces itation'across the drum interior, means to circui and mounted to turn about its longitudinal'axis,"

' itation' across the late heated air through said drum in contact with lift and spill material forgravthe fspilled material, a breaker screenconcentric.

to said drum and extending lengthwise intermediate the endsjthereof with its surfaces inwardlyoffset relative to the flights of'sai'd drum, said breaker screen comprising longitudinally spaced anchor rings, a plurality of circumferentially closely spaced screen-rods fixed to and extending between said anchor rings, brackets connected with the walls of said drum and adjusting screws rotatably carried by said brackets to'support said anchor rings, andto adjust the-same to tautly stretch said screen rods.

3. In a drying apparatus, a rotary cylindrical material conveying drum open from end to end flights projecting from the inner surface of said drum to pickup, lift-and spill material for gravdrum interior, means to circuthe spilled material, and a breaker screen within the interior of said drum interposed in the path of gravitationof the spilled material, said breaker screen comprising longitudinally spaced anchor rings, a plurality' of circumferentially closely spaced screen rods fixed to and extending between 7190 said anchor rings, brackets connected with the walls of'said drum,ad,iusting screws rotatably carried by said brackets to support said anchor ringsand to adjust the same to tautly stretchsaid screen rods, said screen rods being disposed in 3.5 inwardly: spaced relation to the flights of said drum, and means-intermediate said anchor rings for porting said screen rods against relative displacement.

late heated air through said drum in contact with 

